Garment fastener

ABSTRACT

A DEVICE FOR FASTENING GARMENTS HAVING OVERLAPPING PANELS INCLUDING A FIRST RELEASABLE FASTENING ELEMENT HAVING A LOOP THEREON ATTACHED TO THE INSIDE OF ONE OF THE PANELS AND A COMPLEMENTARY SECOND FASTENING ELEMENT ADJUSTABLY ATTACHED TO THE INSIDE OF THE OTHER PANEL AND HAVING A HOOK PORTION THEREON. THE HOOK PORTION ON THE SECOND ELEMENT IS SELECTIVELY ENGAGEABLE WITH THE LOOP ON THE FIRST ELEMENT TO FASTEN THE PANELS TOGETHER. THE ADJUSTABILITY OF THE SECOND ELEMENT PERMITS THE AMOUNT OF OVERLAP OF THE PANELS TO BE SELECTIVELY VARIED. THE FIRST AND SECOND ELEMENTS ARE ATTACHED TO THE PANELS OF THE GARMENT THROUGH A GRIPPING MATERIAL COMMONLY KNOWN AS VELCRO AND A STIFFENER IS PROVIDED TO MAINTAIN THE SHAPE OF THE OVERLAPPING PANEL.

W. C- JQHNSDN, J

GARMENT FASTENER Filed Sept. 19, 1969 f i L Z i l 3 w M n y FIG.1

INVENTOR.

WILUA Q.JOHN$OW,UR

$4M w j HQA ,drrom: Y5

as Velcro and a stiffener is provided to United States Patent 7 ABSTRACT on THE DISCLOSURE A device for fastening "garments having overlapping panels including a first releasable fastening element having a loop thereon'attachedto the-inside of one of the panels and a complementary second fastening-element adjus'tably attached to the inside of the otherpanel and having a hook portion thereon. The hook portion on the second element is selectively engageable with the 'loop' on the first element to fasten the panels together. The adjustability of the second element permits the amount of overlap of the panelsto be selectively varied. The first and second elements are attached to the panels of the garment through a gripping material commonly known maintain the shape of the overlapping panel.

' BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Garments with overlapping panels have been attached together for many years'using buttons, hooks, snaps, or zippers. Such fasteners are usually visible from the outside of the garment and generally have an undesirable appearance. Moreover, when suchgarments are laundered or dry cleaned, the fastening devices frequently tended to rust, resulting in staining the clothes and becoming highly unsightly. a i v .SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION I v These andotherproblems'and disadvantages associated with the prior art are overcome by the-invention disclosed herein in that a fastening device for garments having overlapping panels is-provided which is 'not visible from the exterior of thegarment and whichcan be selectively Patented Sept. 21, 1971 element out to the edge of the overlapping panel so as to reinforce it and prevent deformation thereof once the second element is moved away from the edge thereof.

, These and other features and advantages of the invention will be more clearly understood upon consideration of the following detailed description and in the accompanying drawings wherein like characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout and in which:

FIG. 1 is a view of a garment embodying the invention; FIG. 2 is a partial view showing the invention in FIG.

. I 1 from the inside thereof looking outwardly;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 3-3 in FIG. 2, but with the garment in an overlapping condition; and,

FIG. 4 is a partial view of the inside of the overlapping panel of the garment with the stiffener exploded therefrom and showing a second embodiment thereof.

These figures and the following detailed description disclose specific embodiments of the invention, however, the inventive concept is not limited thereto since it may be embodied in other forms.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENT Referring more particularly to the figures, it will be seen that the invention comprises generally a first fastening element 10 releasably attached to the inside of the underlying panel P of a garment G and a complementtary adjustable fastening element 11 attached to the inside of the overlapping panel P of the garment G. The garment G is shown as a mans suit coat, however, it is to be understood that the invention illustrated may be used with any garment having overlapping panels. A stiffener 12 is provided adjacent each complementary fastening element V 11 to maintain the overlapping panel P in its proper position.

constructed using similar types of material for layers C A: and C and easily removed from the garment-during "laundering" I and dry cleaning so that the fastening device will not rust or otherwise deteriorate. "Moreover, sincethe fastening.

devices may be selectively removed from the garment; they can be removed while the garment is being pressed so that the unsightly depressions formed when garments are pressed using prior art fastening devices can be eliminated.

The invention comprises generally a first releasable fastening element carried by the inside of one of the panels of the garment and having a loop thereon and a second fastening element adjustably and releasably attached to the inside of the other panel of the garment which has a hook complementary to the loop on the first element so that the panels of the garment may be fastened together. The first and second elements are attached to the inside of the garment panels with gripping material commonly known as Velcro so that they can be easily and quickly removed from the inside of the garment panels or the second element may be removed and positioned along the gripping material so that the amount of overlap of the panel can be selectively adjusted. As the overlapping panel of the garment is extended further over the outside of the underlying panel when the second element is moved back from the edge thereof, the extending edge of the panel, being flexible, tends to droop. This is eliminated by a stiffener which is inserted behind the gripping material or within the overlapping panel of the coat extends from the rearmost position of the second The fixed element 10 includes a releasable fastening assembly commonly known as Velcro. The velcro comprises a first component which is made up of a fabric backing 14 carrying a plurality of hook elements 15 and a second complementary component made up of a fabricbacking 16 carrying a loosely felted fibrous material 18 thereon. The backing 14 is sewn to the inside layer of cloth C of panel P adjacent its outer edge E so that the hook elements 15 face the interior of the garment G. The length of the backing 16 is the same as the length of backing 14 and and has a connecting element 19, here shown a metal loop, and a fabric strip 20 sewn to that side of the backing 16 opposite the material 18. When the material 18 is pressedagainst the hook elements 15, the hook elements 15 will enter and engage the fibrous material 18 to-hold the components together until forcibly pulled apart. Therefore, it will be seen that the assembly of the element 19, backing 14 and strip 20 may be selectively removed or attached to the inside of panel P simply by pressing same onto the hook elements 15. It is to be understood that the loosely felted fibrous material 18 can be sewn to the inside of P by sewing the fabric backing 16 thereof to the inside of the panel rather than backing 14.

The adjustable element 11 also includes a releasable fastening assembly commonly known as Velcro, with the first component thereof made up of a fabric backing 24 carrying a plurality of hook elements 25 and a second complementary component made up of a fabric backing 26 carrying a loosely felted fibrous material 28 thereon.

The backing 24 is sewn to the inside layer of cloth C of panel P adjacent its outer edge E so that the hook elements 25 thereof face the interior of the garment G. The length of the backing 26 is considerably longer than the length of backing 24 and has a connecting element 29, here shown as a metal hook, with a fabric strip 30 sewn to that side of the backing 26 opposite the material 28. When the material 28 is pressed against the hook elements 25, the hook elements 25 will enter and engage the fibrous material 28 to hold the components together until forcily pulled apart. Since the length of the backing 26 is considerably longer than the backing 24, it will be seen that the position of the connecting element 29 can be selectively adjusted along the length of the backing 26 so as to selectively position the adjustable element 11 further away from the outer edge E of the panel P It is to be further understood that the components of the Velcro may be selectively reversed so that the loosely felted fibrous material 18 or 28 is attached to the panel R or P and that the hook elements 15 or 25 are attached to the connecting element 19 or 29. When the connecting element 29 is hooked into the connecting element .19, it will be seen from FIGS. 1 and 3 that the panels P and P are connected together with the panel P overlapping the panel P as shown in FIG. 3.

The reinforcing strip or stiffener 12 is an elongate resilient member as seen in FIGS. 2-4 having a curved portion 40 at one end thereof. The stiffener 12 is selectively received as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 in a pocket P between the cloth layers C and C of the panel P of the garment through the slit S therein. The strip 12 is shown in position directly behind the adjustable element 1 1 and extends out to adjacent the outer edge E of the panel P to control the position thereof and prevent the panel P from curving outwardly. It will be noted that the curved portion 40 thereof faces inwardly with respect to the garments G so as to curve the outer edge E of the panel P inwardly toward the panel P It will be noted that a pocket P may be defined between the backing 26' carrying the fibrous material 28' in that embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and the inside layer of cloth C with the function thereof being the same as with the pocket P shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. In that embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the Velcro has been reversed.

Iclaim:

1. In combination, a garment having an overlapping panel and an underlying panel, each of said panels being folded back to provide a double thickness of fabric adjacent the overlapping edges thereof, a first component comprising a fabric backing secured to the inner side of one of said panels adjacent the overlapping edge thereof, a second complementary component comprising a fabric backing and carrying a connecting element, one of said components carrying a plurality of hook elements and the other comprising a material adapted to cooperate with said hook elements to form a fastening means, whereby the two elements may be secured together in adjusted positions, a third component secured to the inner mentioned connecting element to hold the overlapping panel'edges together in a position determined by the adjusted positions of said first and second, and third and fourth components respectively, a pocket underlying said first component and extending to a point adjacent the overlapping edge of the panel to which said component is attached, and a stiffener received in said pocket.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said stiffener is a flat elongated resilient member and the pocket which receives it is formed in the overlying panel member, and

, wherein said stiffener has an inwardly curving portion 'adjacent the overlying edge of said panel whereby said edge is caused to curve inwardly toward the other panel. 3. The combination of claim 2 wherein one of said connecting elements is a hook and the other is a loop.

Refereuces Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 10/ 1893 Harrison 2A-225X 4/ 1911 Price 24-203UX 12/ 1925 Mayer 2--265 7/ 1943 Schalet 24-225 8/ 1956 Hawie 24-228X 2/ 1966 Mates 24-204X 7/ 1970 Halstead 24-204X FOREIGN PATENTS 10/1949 Great Britain 24-203 BERNARD A. GELAK, Primary Examiner Y US. Cl. X.R. 24204, 206, 225 I 

